India does not need 5G yet: Vodafone Idea

Leading telecom operator Vodafone Idea said India should put off 5G spectrum auctions beyond 2020 as there aren’t specific 5G use cases available, and 4G is more than adequate for most customers and Internet of Things (IoT) services in the near term.

“The most appropriate time to hold auctions will be somewhere after 2020,” said Vishant Vora, chief technology officer, Vodafone Idea. “We need time to develop India-specific use cases and that takes time. We are working with our partners to develop them. The maturity of that (5G) technology will be there when it makes sense.” Vodafone Idea has, all along, taken this stand on postponing spectrum auctions, calling on the government to fix the health of the telecom sector in the interim.

The government, however, is confident about rolling out 5G in tandem with global markets in 2020, and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is expected to hold the next round of spectrum auctions after August.


“We are the largest IoT solutions provider today and we are doing it with 2G, 3G and 4G,” Vora said. “There’s no need to do 5G for IoT in 95% of these use cases.” He said 5G will be required for select use cases like virtual reality (VR), high definition gaming or remote surgery, as these use cases require lower latency and high throughput. “For these services, yes, you may need some spectrum, but they are still not the bulk of IoT services.” Vora said most of the world will go for 5G services only by 2021-22.

INTEGRATION BY JUNE 2020
Vodafone Idea is currently in the process of merging two networks and plans to exit more than 90,000 sites to cut down on duplication and reduce capital and operational expenditure. Having finished integration in nine circles, the telco is now aiming to finish the integration by June 2020.

“We want to deliver the benefits to the shareholders and customers faster,” said Vora, adding that the company also wants to ensure that it adds plenty of capacity while modernising the network. He added that the ongoing issue with tower companies over site exit charges is not coming in the way of achieving network synergies.

“My opinion is that 3G will be phased out before 2G,” Vora said. He said 2G technology still has some life left as it has a large installed base in India. “Customers are satisfied and will continue to use 2G,” Vora said. “A lot of IoT machines were originally done on 2G and GPRS. 2G will not be phased out any time soon.”